Three Minutes to Midnight
by RackOnInNC
Summary: One Shot - Missing scene. In 5-21 "Two Minutes to Midnight" Castiel called Dean from the hospital. What happened before that? Castiel with mentions of Dean. NO slash. Rated for just a tad of mild cussing.


**One Shot - Missing scene. In 5-21 "Two Minutes to Midnight" Castiel called Dean from the hospital. What happened before that? Castiel with mentions of Dean. NO slash. Rated for just a tad of mild cussing. Might write the after and the bus ride if I get enough reviews, but here lately I'm not getting many. *frowny face* R&R**

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><p>Voices….yelling…blood everywhere…<em>his<em> blood. _Wings?_ _No…not wings…strange machine._ Castiel fought his way through darkness and awoke to a cacophony of noise…voices he didn't know…a smell he vaguely recognized…blinding lights that made his head throb even through closed eyes…and searing pain. _Pain…why can't I heal it? _His head swam as he tried desperately to make sense of the situation he found himself in. _That smell…a hospital?_ Squeezing his eyes shut tighter against the light, he wanted to push away the hands that poked and prodded at him. They kept coming. He flexed his massive wings and nothing happened. He prayed to his Father and to his brothers and sisters. _What is wrong with me? Please help me!_ Finally, with all the strength he could muster, he called out.

"Dean!"

The voices stopped. Opening his eyes slowly he tried to focus and managed to make out a circle of masked figures staring down at him in amazement. _Are my wings manifesting? What are they looking at? _As quickly as the voices had stopped they started up again, even louder than before. He shut his eyes once again and tried to block them out. _My head hurts! Will you please shut up? _It was all too much. Admitting defeat even though he didn't know what he was fighting, he forced himself to relax and focus on the voices; maybe they would tell him something.

"Who said this guy was brain dead?"

"His EEG was flat just 15 minutes ago. I checked it myself!"

"Physical responses?"

"None since he was brought in a few days ago."

A face suddenly appeared in front of Castiel and flashed a light into his eyes. He squinted and jerked back, finding that he was bound in some way and unable to move.

"Sir? Can you hear me? Do you know where you are?"

Castiel tried to process the questions. His mind didn't want to work. His voice didn't want to work either but he managed to croak out something.

"Yes…No."

The forehead of the face crinkled and Castiel recognized confusion. _At least I'm not the only one here that is confused. _The face disappeared.

"Well he certainly has some now!"

"Yes, I see that, Doctor. I assure you all proper procedures were followed."

"Well get him out of here and back to his room. I think he probably wants to keep his organs."

Another face…this one kinder and female…appeared. "You are in the hospital. You had an …um…accident. Can you squeeze my hand?"

Castiel felt a soft hand squeeze his gently and he tried to return the gesture.

"That's good. We need to get you back to your room so just relax and we'll get this sorted out. "

Another flurry of activity, noise, and voices bombarded his throbbing head and he sank back onto the hard surface beneath him_. I'm so tired. Why am I tired?_

"Tired" he managed to croak out.

"I know. Just try to sleep. It won't take long."

_I don't sleep. Wait...she thinks I'm human. Am I? _Castiel shook his head to try to clear it. Everything was so confusing.

"Just close your eyes and relax. We'll have you back in your room in no time."

_Back in my room? I don't have a room. Angels don't need rooms. Humans need rooms…motel rooms._

"Dean!" he called again.

"Is this Dean a relative of yours? Can we contact him for you?

_Relative?_ _No…what do I say? _Concentrating was hard, but Castiel forced himself to sift through the few things he could remember. He heard a voice in his mind…Dean's voice. _"When humans want something we lie…that's how you become President!"_

"Yes…brother."

"OK, just close your eyes and sleep for me. I'll help you call him as soon as we get you situated."

Castiel closed his eyes even though he was uncertain how sleep worked. He soon found out as darkness overtook him quickly.

Castiel opened his eyes again to see lights flashing by quickly overhead. He was being moved. _Where are they taking me? _The flashing lights made his head hurt so he closed his eyes and tried to shut them out. _Something happened. What was it? Why can't I remember?_ Before he could think about it anymore he felt himself being lifted and placed on a softer surface. Sinking gratefully into the softness he sighed and listened as the noises grew fainter. When it sounded like they were gone he finally opened his eyes once again. The person belonging to the kind face was standing there looking at him. Sunlight coming in through a window on his left made his head start throbbing again and he winced.

She moved to the window and closed the blinds, then pulled the chair over to the side and the bed and sat down.

"Is that better?"

Castiel nodded his head.

"What do you remember?"

"N-nothing. What happened?"

"We don't know really. Some strange story about you suddenly appearing out of thin air on a fishing boat off the coast. The fishermen were very upset. You were airlifted here in a helicopter…do you remember any of that?"

"No. Wait…I was with Dean…and Sam. Yes, Sam…and we…" Castiel trailed off when he couldn't remember anymore…just Dean and Sam…and a large building.

"You what? Were they hurt too?"

"I hope not. I don't remember."

"OK well, do you want to try to call Dean? Do you know his number?"

Castiel closed his eyes and willed himself to remember the number, but nothing came. _Phone…cell phone._

"My phone…it's there."

"Your cell phone was damaged. Melted actually. Another strange occurance."

Castiel finally looked down and saw that he was dressed differently, not Jimmy's clothes. _Hospital gown? _He started to reach up and was stopped by numerous tubes and wires sticking out everywhere.

"Don't pull out your IV. The doctor will probably take it out in a day or two."

"IV?"

"The tube in your arm. Haven't you ever been in the hospital before?"

"No."

"Do you remember your name?"

Castiel took a deep breath and held it, trying to decide what to say. _Castiel? No. Jimmy? No. _He felt a hand on his leg and looked down at it, wishing his mind would start working clearly again.

"It's OK. The sedation they gave you will take a while to wear off so don't try to remember too much right now. Just get some sleep and maybe more will come once you've had a chance to rest." the kind face said, squeezing his leg gently.

Picking up a device with buttons from the side of the bed she handed it to him. "This is the call button. If you need me just press that and I'll be here as soon as I can. This one turns the TV on if you want to watch it and those two change the channel and volume."

Castiel cast a bewildered look at her and wondered why he would want to watch TV.

"It's OK…if you don't want to. Just keep it handy in case you need me."

"Thank you." Castiel said, looking at the kind face and wishing it was Dean's.

He watched as she left the room. Finally alone, he carefully maneuvered his right arm so he could look under the covers and access the damage. Everything hurt, but he couldn't see anything that would cause pain. There was only a only a small red bump on his left arm that seemed to be asking him to scratch it. Every move made his back twinge and his stomach growled as it had when he was under Famine's influence. _I'm hungry… I hurt…thirsty…Human!_

Castiel's mind was racing now, trying to sift through the confusing images that kept popping up one after the other as his head began to clear. Thinking about them made his head throb even harder. As he shifted to get into a better position to see the mysterious red bump, his gown gapped open at the neck and he caught a glimpse of bloody bandages where there should be skin. Peeling back one of them he looked underneath and it all came flooding back. The box cutter…the daring plan to banish the other angels with the sigil carved into his chest. _Did it work? Are Dean and Sam still alive? Did they get Adam out?"_

Grasping his head with both hands Castiel desperately tried to make it stop hurting. Having seen both Dean and Sam do it at times, he had often wondered how it could help. It didn't really, but the effort at least made him feel like he was doing something. All the images continued to flash through his head, but the one thing he knew he needed…Dean's phone number…was elusive.

When the effort became too much he relaxed into the pillows and attempted to clear his mind. Maybe sleep would help…if he only knew how to achieve it.

Dean seemed to be very good at going to sleep…not very good at staying that way. _Nightmares…will I have nightmares? _Castiel had seen Dean's nightmares. To an angel...not so scary…to a human? Castiel found himself shaking. Since he had never felt the sensation he was unsure why it was happening. The kind face appeared at the door and Castiel watched her as she came to the side of the bed.

"Having trouble sleeping?"

"Yes. I-I don't seem to be very good at it." Castiel said, still feeling his body shaking slightly.

"People find it hard to sleep in hospitals with all the noise going on. And of course people coming in at all hours and poking at you and giving you pills doesn't help."

"I'm afraid I would have trouble anywhere."

"Let me get you a warm blanket and maybe that will help. You look like you are cold."

_Cold? Damn…human. _Castiel fidgeted with the covers, running his fingers over the rough blanket. It didn't feel very comforting like he assumed blankets should be. Humans wrapped newborn babies in them, offered blankets when others were sick….all situations where a blanket should be soft. This one wasn't. He frowned as she came back into the room.

"What is your name?" Castiel asked, as she tucked the warm blanket in around him.

"I'm sorry I guess I should have told you that. It's Lydia. Is that better?"

"Yes, thank you Lydia."

"The TV has some music channels on it. Maybe some classical would help you sleep?"

"Classic Rock?" _That's what Dean would want. Maybe if I listen to some of his music I'll remember more._

Lydia laughed and turned on the TV, flipping through the channels until she found the Classic Rock. "Not exactly sleeping music…and you don't look the type…but if you think it will help."

She turned up the volume and Castiel heard a familiar tune filtering through the tinny speakers.

_I was inside looking outside, oh the millions of faces  
>But still I'm alone, waiting, hours of waiting<br>I could feel the tension, I was longing for home  
>I'm looking out for the two of us And I hope we'll be here<br>When they're through with us, I'm a long way from home_

He certainly _was_ a long, long way from home. _How am I going to get back to Dean? _ Castiel felt the warmth of the blanket and sank back into the pillows, remembering the rumble of the Impala's engine behind the song at some point in his various travels with Dean and Sam. He vaguely heard Lydia say something, but he seemed to be drifting away. _Is this sleep? _With the music droning on in the background Castiel finally fell into a deep sleep.

Puzzled, Castiel opened his phone and looked at it. _Lydia said it was destroyed_. Dean's number flashed across the screen briefly and the phone disappeared from his hand as his Angel Blade appeared in its place. _My Angel Blade is on the floor of the muffler factory._ Castiel looked around and saw only a two lane black top stretching away in front of him. _Am I in Dean's Heaven?_ Looking down he could see that he was fully dressed again, with no signs of the trauma that had befallen him. A figure appeared on the horizon and as it walked toward him he could see it was Dean. Dean was trying to tell him something but he couldn't hear it. Castiel ran to meet Dean, struggling to hear what he was saying, but when he got to the place Dean should have been he was gone. Turning back in the direction he had come he saw that the road was gone, replaced by hundreds of cell phones littering the ground. _This must be a dream. Dean's number. I have to remember Dean's number. _Something grabbed his shoulder and began to shake him, but no matter how hard he struggled he couldn't see what it was.

"Wake up! It's just a dream." Lydia said insistently as she tried to wake Castiel up.

Castiel grabbed at the hand on his shoulder and looked up into Lydia's eyes. Taking a deep breath and relaxing his grip he sat up and concentrated on remembering the number he saw.

"It was just a dream…it's OK."

"No….phone number…Dean's!" Castiel stuttered out.

"Here….write it down before you forget." Lydia quickly pulled the pen out of her pocket and flipped the top piece of paper on his chart over before shoving them at him.

Castiel closed his eyes and tried to see the number…it was hazy but once he had written it down and opened his eyes it looked familiar.

"OK that's good. Can you remember your name now?"

Castiel knew he should probably use a fake one and scoured his mind for the fake names Dean and Sam frequently used. Finally he remembered the one Dean used for him in Maine.

"Eddie…Moscone."

"Bet that gets you a lot of grief!" Lydia said, smiling down at him.

Castiel looked at her, confused. "Why would it cause me grief?"

"The movie? Midnight Run?" Lydia prompted.

"I'm afraid I'm not familiar with many movies." Castiel looked down at his hands regretting, not for the first time, that he hadn't spent more time with Dean watching movies.

"Oh, OK. Eddie Moscone was the bail bondsman in that movie."

"I see. May I call Dean now?" Castiel looked at her and could see she was disappointed that he didn't get her reference. _Just like Dean._

Lydia took the clipboard back and looked at the number.

"I don't recognize the area code, where is that?"

Castiel panicked slightly. _What is an area code? Why haven't I paid more attention to these things? Bobby lives in…._

"South Dakota" Castiel blurted, hoping she hadn't noticed the hesitation.

Lydia patted him on the leg and winked at him. "See I told you that memory would came back."

"It seems to be slowly returning." Castiel sighed inwardly, glad that she was attributing his hesitation to memory loss

Lydia reached behind her and produced a phone. "Here ya go. It'll be long distance, so let me enter my PIN so it won't cost you an arm and leg on the hospital bill."

Castiel took the phone and stared at it after she had punched in some numbers, not being familiar with phones aside from his cell phone, much less the string of words that followed.

Lydia tore the corner of the paper he had written on and laid it in front of him. "I'll give you some privacy. Just ring the call button if you need anything."

Castiel watched her leave and then carefully pressed the buttons, hoping the number he saw in his dream was correct.

"Hello?"

"Dean."

_I'm going home._

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><p><strong><em>I looked but couldn't find a definitive answer as to whether Organ Donations are done with John Doe patients. It seemed like a good way to go with he story though so I went with it.<em>**


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